Rep. Julia Letlow won the Louisiana U.S. Senate runoff against John Fleming after polls closed on June 27, extending President Donald Trump’s influence in the Republican Party just weeks after Sen. Bill Cassidy’s exit.
For a state that many political forecasters treat as comfortably Republican, the timing still landed with force. On June 27, within 40 minutes of polls closing, Rep. Julia Letlow was projected to defeat John Fleming in Louisiana’s U.S. Senate runoff.
Letlow’s win caps a bitter primary battle and hands Trump a preferred outcome in a race that has been tied closely to the administration’s political muscle. The victory comes only six weeks after Sen. Bill Cassidy’s career ended, a moment that further bent the Republican Party to the administration’s will.
Cassidy’s exit has also been wrapped in internal friction. Multiple attendees said Republican senators reported yelling in a closed-door meeting with President Donald Trump, and that Sen. Bill Cassidy allegedly raised his voice at Trump over the Iran war.
Letlow, 45, now moves into a new role after a rapid rise that has been fueled largely by Trump’s endorsement. She joined Congress in 2021, replacing her husband, Luke, the year after he died of COVID-19 complications before taking office. Before politics. she worked in higher education as a university administrator and had been a finalist for University of Louisiana at Monroe president.
Trump had pushed hard for her. Earlier this year, he encouraged Letlow to run against Cassidy, whose chief offense, in Trump’s framing, was voting to convict the president during his second impeachment trial following the Jan. 6, 2021 attack at the U.S. Capitol building.
In a Jan. 17 social media post, Trump declared: “Should she decide to enter this race, Julia Letlow has my complete and total endorsement.”
Beyond Trump, Letlow accumulated support from other senior GOP figures in Washington, including House Majority Leader Steve Scalise of Louisiana and Sens. Rick Scott of Florida and Katie Britt of Alabama.
Louisiana Democrats, meanwhile, finalized their nomination by selecting farmer Jamie Davis, according to NBC News and DDHQ. Even with that choice on the ballot, the Pelican State is rated as a solid GOP seat by most political forecasters for the fall.
The sequence of these events—Cassidy’s departure. Trump’s push. and Letlow’s fast climb—creates a single through-line: power in Washington is reaching deeper into state politics. with endorsements translating quickly into electoral momentum. The matchup now leaves Republicans celebrating a win that arrived swiftly after polls closed. while Democrats face the challenge of competing in a contest that forecasters largely expected to tilt Republican.
With the runoff decided, Louisiana’s Senate path shifts to what comes next in the broader election cycle. This story will be updated.
Louisiana Senate runoff Julia Letlow John Fleming Bill Cassidy Donald Trump Luke Letlow Jamie Davis Rick Scott Katie Britt Steve Scalise U.S. Senate election
So Trump just picked the next senator again? Wild.
I don’t even get why people are surprised. Louisiana is basically always red anyway. Also the article says it was projected within 40 minutes?? That seems fast like rigged fast lol.
Wait Cassidy was yelling at Trump over the Iran war? That sounds like some Fox News drama but also… Senators always act like they’re mad about everything. If she’s winning that quick, it’s probably because Letlow’s team knew the outcome. Not sure though.
Letlow winning feels like the party just keeps circling the same people. Her husband died of COVID and now she’s in Senate, like okay that’s sad, but I still don’t trust it. The headline says Trump-backed and then talks about Iran war yelling? Like, what does that have to do with a runoff vote in Louisiana? Sounds like more influence than democracy.